Stabilized Drill Guide With Movable Shaft Joint
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current drill guides for orthopedic surgery, such as those used in glenoid arthroplasty, often fail to ensure precise placement and orientation of implants, leading to potential loosening and failure of the implanted devices, which can result in costly reoperations.
Innovation Solution
A drill guide with a movable shaft and joint system that allows for precise alignment and stabilization against the bone, featuring a hinge joint, universal joint, or polyaxial joint, along with anatomical reference features and a locking mechanism, to ensure accurate hole placement and implant positioning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If a rigid drill guide is used to maintain stability, then the structural strength is improved, but the ability to adapt to anatomical variations and achieve precise alignment is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The drill guide incorporates a movable shaft coupled to the working portion by a joint (hinge, universal, or polyaxial joint), allowing the shaft to move relative to the working portion. This dynamic structure enables the drill guide to adapt to anatomical variations while maintaining stability during the drilling process, resolving the contradiction between rigidity and adaptability.
2Device complexity
If the shaft is fixed rigidly to improve manufacturing simplicity, then the device complexity is reduced, but the ability to allow controlled movement for precise alignment is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The joint mechanism allows controlled movement of the shaft relative to the working portion, providing degrees of freedom for alignment while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure. The joint can be a hinge joint for single-axis movement, universal joint for two-axis movement, or polyaxial joint for multi-axis movement, balancing complexity and precision requirements.
3Ease of manufacture
If the drill guide structure is simplified to reduce device complexity, then the ease of manufacture is improved, but the ability to provide stable positioning and control during drilling is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The drill guide is divided into distinct components: a working portion with a bone-facing side and through hole, and a shaft coupled by a joint. This segmentation allows each component to be manufactured separately with standard techniques while the assembly provides the required positioning stability through the joint mechanism.
4Adaptability or versatility
If a movable joint system is added to improve adaptability, then the adaptability to anatomical variations is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The movable joint system provides necessary adaptability with minimal added complexity. The joint allows the shaft to move relative to the working portion, accommodating anatomical variations, while the overall structure remains relatively simple and manufacturable.
Data Source
Figure 1A~2B
Figure 3A~5
Figure 6~7B
AI summary
A drill guide includes a working portion and a shaft, with a joint formed between the working portion and the shaft so that the shaft is movable relative to the working portion about the joint. The working portion includes at least one drill guide hole which receives a drill for making a hole in a bone. The joint isolates the working portion from unintentional movements of the shaft so that the working portion remains stable against a bone surface. The joint also enables the shaft to be used as a retractor or pry bar against surrounding anatomical structures if desired. The drill guide may be included in a system with an implant component and/or other surgical instruments.